Hot Chocolate
by nanisnow
Summary: It's absolutely freezing outside. At Cafe Crypton, is hot chocolate the only solution?


Nine degrees.

Sections of the ground were glazed in ice just waiting to trip innocent pedestrians and the chattering of teeth matched the crackling howl of the icy wind.

It was one million percent, undeniably, most certainly cold as hell. Well…actually, considering the fact that hell is a burning…well…hell of damnation and fire, there were certainly better choices of words.

However, any nice, warm fire would have been fine to Luka, even if it came from an inferno from the depths of the underworld. She stuffed her gloved hands into her pockets and quickened her pace towards Café Crypton, where she'd promised to meet Miku for their date. Because of their conflicting schedules, it was hard for them to find time to spend together, so despite the freezing temperature, they still wanted to meet up. The thought of Miku smiling sweetly, all bundled up in her winter outfit, managed to make the trip bearable for Luka.

Finally, Luka reached the entrance to the café, hair wild, eyes nearly frozen shut, and face pinker than her hair. She flung open the door and practically flew in. Immediately, she felt the warmth of the heater permeating her skin and the sweet scent of freshly baked cookies. She closed her eyes and allowed herself a couple seconds to bask in her salvation from the frozen hell outside, before she opened them.

"Hey, Luka!" Lily greeted from the counter.

Luka smiled at her. "Good afternoon!"

Lily smirked. "If you're looking for the shrimp, she's over there by the window," she said.

Luka looked over and saw Miku, who beamed and waved enthusiastically. Luka started walking over to her, but not before huffing and retorting, "Miku is not a shrimp!"

Lily just laughed. "Enjoy yourselves, but not _too_ much," she said with a suggestive wiggle of her eyebrow. "We still have PDA rules here!"

Luka rolled her eyes at her best friend, while Miku giggled. Sometimes, Lily was just too much.

"Hello, Miku," Luka greeted, sitting down and smiling sheepishly at as she attempted to smooth out her hair.

"Luka!" Miku reached over the table and hugged Luka, careful not to disturb her freshly brewed hot chocolate. "Whoa, you're so cold!" She sat down, picking up and blowing on her hot chocolate with a determined look on her face that Luka found adorable. "Here, have some!" she said, holding the mug out to Luka.

Luka took it with a grateful smile and took a sip. Sweet and warm, just like Miku. Luka thanked her as she handed the mug back. Miku pouted. "Nope," she said cheekily. "You're not giving it back until you're all warmed up!"

Luka flushed. Miku was just too cute! "How do you know I'm not all warmed up already?"

Miku thought for a second, before abruptly standing up. Luka was briefly confused, until Miku took her chair and scooted next to her. She then wrapped her arms around Luka and pressed their cheeks together. Luka was sure the blood rushing to her face would have been warm enough for Miku, but Miku clicked her tongue. "Nope, not yet," she smiled. She then put on her determined face again. "I'm not moving until you are completely warmed up," she said with even more conviction.

Somehow, Luka managed to flush a deeper red, but she accepted Miku's embrace, kissing her on the cheek.

"Wow! You guys sure work fast!" called Lily. "But remember what I said about PDA. Too much fan service is bad for our customers!"

Luka ignored her in favor of cuddling with Miku and forgetting about the world around them. The atmosphere was warm, and the air was filled with the sounds of mugs clicking against the table and fellow university students chatting. Slowly, warmth was trickling into her body as she and Miku chatted away about school and work. Luka could get used to this, sitting there at the café and ignoring the noisy wind beating against the window.

"Hey, Luka, do you want another sip of-" Miku started, before being cut off by the sound of the door jingling and the rush of cold air that followed. She glanced over, then quickly looked away, huffing and holding Luka even closer to her.

"Miku?" Luka questioned.

Miku pouted even more, refusing to turn around and burying her face into Luka's shoulder. "No looking!" she declared childishly, her voice slightly muffled by the fabric.

Luka sighed at Miku's behavior and turned around anyway. Miku tightened her grip. Luka sighed again. Miku could be so childish sometimes, but only one person could be responsible for Miku's immediate change in attitude. She looked at the door, and her suspicions were confirmed.

Yup. Gakupo.

He strutted into the café, with Kaito and the Kagamine twins behind them. Upon seeing Luka and Miku, his eyes lit up and he made a beeline for their table. "Greetings from this humble samurai!" he declared with a smile and open arms.

Luka rolled her eyes and sighed for the third time. Miku once again refused to look at him. "Hello," Luka offered. She nudged Miku with her elbow gently. "Come on, Miku, don't be like that. It was just one time!"

Miku stayed stubbornly rooted to Luka's shoulder. "I don't wanna say hello to some stupid eggplant who flirted with _my_ Luka."

Luka smiled inwardly. Jealous!Miku was cute too! Meanwhile, Gakupo clutched his heart as if he had been stabbed, and his eyes watered comically. "But Miku-dono-"

"I don't wanna hear it!"

"Come on, Miku-" Luka started.

Miku shook her head vehemently. She finally looked up but made sure to pointedly ignore Gakupo's presence. "Luka, he also made fun of leeks!"

She gave Luka her puppy eyes look, and Luka sighed, "Yes, I remember, but I'm sure he's sorry"—Gakupo nodded vehemently—"Please find it in your heart to forgive his rudeness."

Miku wavered for a second, before shaking her head again.

"Do it for me?" Luka pleaded.

Miku intensified her puppy eyes, but Luka held her ground against the cuteness. Miku finally gave in and muttered a quiet hello.

Gackupo's tears stopped falling, and he smiled energetically once again. "Please forgive me, Miku-dono! I hereby swear never to mock leeks again!"

Miku gave him the stink eye, but after a pointed look from Luka, she muttered, "Yeah, you're forgiven." However, Miku remained clinging to Luka's arm and Luka wasn't sure if she heard Miku mutter something like "chopping up eggplants and hiding the body", and when Miku was sure Luka wasn't looking, she stuck her tongue out at Gakupo.

Luka knew their date would not be able to continue as it had before, but she prayed that Gakupo would leave them alone so that it could at least continue to be a date and not end up being a one-sided glaring contest between Miku and Gakupo. Yet, Luka was somehow not surprised her prayers were not answered when Gakupo moved a chair from a nearby table and invited himself to their table. Luka bit back a grimace and wondered why he wasn't as tactful as the rest of their friends, who offered their greetings and discreetly chose other tables, as not to disturb their date.

Gakupo took his sweet time taking off his coat and mounting it on his chair. He then made a beeline for the counter and ordered green tea from Meiko, the other barista. This left a couple of sweet seconds for Luka to appreciate the quietness, but she could hardly stand seeing Miku sulking over "losing" to Gakupo. Just as she was about to give Miku a kiss, Gakupo returned, sipping his tea and letting out a hearty "ahh."

Luka's eyebrow twitched, and she contemplated throttling him. However, she restrained herself with the fact that it would set a bad example for Miku who hated his guts already and that he, despite his being a royal annoyance, was still a good friend.

Finally looking at the table, Gackupo noticed that there were only two mugs. "Miku-dono, do you not have a drink? If thou requests, thou may have some of my tea-"

Miku glared at him. "No way. Besides, hot chocolate is way better for warming up." With that, she remover her right arm from Luka, picked up her now cold hot chocolate, and chugged it, slamming the mug down when she was finished. Luka noted the cuteness factor of Miku's hot chocolate moustache from the sidelines.

Gakupo's eyes widened. "I beg your pardon? I do not understand where this sudden attack is coming from, but it is my humble opinion that tea works just as well, if not better!"

Miku glared even harder, though wiping her hot chocolate moustache somewhat diminished the severity of her expression. Even so, Gakupo looked briefly intimidated, but he held his ground with a determined stare of his own. In the background, Luka sighed again. She mourned the loss of a perfectly good date.

"Hot chocolate!"

"Tea!"

"Chocolate!"

"Tea!"

If only it wasn't so cold outside…

"Chocolate!"

"Tea!"

"Tea!"

"Chocolate!"

"Ha! You admit it!" exclaimed Miku with a triumphant smirk. Gakupo cried in despair.

"How could I fall for such an elementary tactic!" he wailed. He looked around the room in desperation before setting his sights on Kaito. "I humbly request a rematch, Miku-dono. Please allow us to ask Kaito for his opinion. Surely he agrees with my sentiment!"

Miku grinned savagely. "There's no way he'll agree with you, but let's ask him anyway! It'll be your loss."

Miku and Gackupo marched over to Kaito, who was one of the many patrons in the café who had overheard their conversation. Luka sympathized with him but was powerless to stop the onslaught. "Kaito!" Miku and Gakupo both exclaimed.

Kaito gulped. "H-how can I help you guys?"

"Tell us if hot chocolate or tea is better!"

"Ummm…. I think-"

"That tea is better?"

"Actually-"

"Ha! I knew it! Kaito thinks chocolate is better!"

Gakupo looked as if Kaito had betrayed him. "Brother, why?" he sobbed.

Kaito looked embarrassed. "Actually, guys, I don't drink hot drinks. I like cold stuff, like ice cream!"

Gakupo looked relieved. "So you have not betrayed me, brother. Please forgive me for assuming the worst."

Kaito sweatdropped, "Um, don't sweat it, Gakupo."

Even so, Miku was not sedated. "But if you were to like hot drinks, which would be your favorite?" She folded her arms and leaned over Kaito.

Kaito started sweating for real. "Um, really guys," his eyes frantically searched the café. "How about you ask someone else…like Meiko!" Kaito frantically gestured towards her and, when Miku and Gakupo's backs were turned towards him, desperately mouthed "sorry" to Meiko.

As Miku and Gakupo were ready to advance on her, Meiko, without looking up, said, "If it's not sake, I won't drink it."

"Same here," Lily quickly added.

They then turned to the Kagamine twins, who froze as they were quietly sneaking to the door.

"Rin-chan and Len-kun-"

"Oranges and bananas!" they screamed before they raced out the door.

This left Luka.

Only, in her despair over the broken date, she did not notice the advance of Gackupo and Miku.

"Luka-dono!" cried Gakupo as he grabbed her hand and knelt to the ground. "If thou dost not prefer tea, I may be forced to commit seppuku!"

Miku, newly reinvigorated, grabbed Luka's other arm. "Luka, you're my girlfriend. Side with me!" She then remembered Gakupo was holding Luka's had and glared at him. "Luka's mine! Get off!" she said as she proceeded to latch onto Luka like a koala.

Oh the date, oh the date, oh the date, Luka despaired.

"Luka! Luka!"

Oh, this was giving her a night fever. Finally, Luka had enough. She cleared her throat, and the two stopped their tantrums.

"I, Luka, have made my decision!"

Miku and Gackupo looked up at her eagerly

"I

Like

FRIENDSHIP!"

"WHAT?!" Miku and Gakupo screeched.

Luka looked at the two with tired eyes. "This is final. I will not be choosing sides if this decision will hurt anybody. I treasure this café and will not let this decision hurt anyone here. You guys are getting so worked up that I am seriously concerned. Please make up with Kaito and the twins. Friendship is what's really best for warming up!"

Everyone stared at her in awe. "Luka," they murmured.

With that, Luka slipped on her jacket and grabbed Miku's hand, holding Miku's jacket with the other. Just as Miku put on her jacket and they were prepared to leave the still shocked café, Luka realized she was a bit thirsty after her speech.

"Hey, Lily, can I get a coffee to go?"


End file.
